Profile and Interview with Jerry Riddick: Exceeding the Boundaries

I spoke with Jerry at his house on the westside of Tucson and had an in-depth discussion about his running life and his outlook on the future. I found Jerry to be a consummate professional. He truly loves the trail and the outdoor experience. He has an impressive resume of 100-mile finishes over 10 years and counting. What follows is his profile and a transcript of our conversation. Enjoy!

PROFILE OF RUNNER:

A.  Name, age, city and state, how long lived there?

Jerry Riddick /59/Tucson AZ /21 yrs

B.  Place of birth, where did you grow up, high school, college, military, other?

Brooklyn NY / Massapequa ( Long Island NY) / Massapequa High/ Hofstra University BSEE

C.  Other than running – hobbies, interests, pets, kids, current employment? 2 dogs/2 kids / Engineering Lab Manager Texas Instruments / Backpacking-hiking -cycling/ fixing my house

D.  Favorite distance to run or race on trail and on the road?

50K (race or run) but 100 miles is a special experience

E.  Favorite race course or event?

 Old Pueblo 50Mile- still fun and beautiful

F.  Favorite Tucson area trail to train, run, hike?

Tucson Mountains/SNP west. Hiking the canyon can’t be beat

G. Favorite vacation destination?

Mexico although I haven’t gone there for several years.

H.  Favorite post-race/run food, drink and activity, ie. hot tub, ice cold river soak, etc?

Sitting in a chair.

I.   Pet Peeves?

Laziness and Extremism. I work hard and think of myself as extremely moderate.

J.  Current book you are reading or favorite author?

I just finished the Millenium trilogy by Steig Larrsson

I love reading Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

K.  Favorite quote or saying to live by?

Nowhere is too far to run if you have the time.

L.  Person you look up to, emulate, hero?

Dalai Lama

M.  What has been your worst running injury?

Broken hand- it hurt a lot. Torn Meniscus- all better

TA:  Thank you for having me over to your home and the excellent dinner. I forgot you lived on a dirt road.

Jerry:  Don't mention it. You were here once before but probably don't remember much. It was when you and Chris attempted the Four-headed Monster and dropped out at my house.

TA:  Oh...I remember. We will have to revisit that someday. Well, first of all, let's talk about your most recent 100-mile race completion.

Profile and Interview with Chris Fall: Running for His Life

I visited Chris Fall and his family at his home last week and enjoyed a brat and a beer before we sat down and talked about his running career. In fact, I know Chris so well that I skipped the preliminaries of all his past accomplishments and jumped right to his post race synopsis of his most recent 100-mile finish. He finished Pine to Palm 100 on September 17^th near Ashland, Oregon in just over 29 hours after a three year hiatus from the distance. Chris is a very accomplished and well balanced runner as well as a funny story teller. He made me laugh. He runs every distance from the 5k on the road to the 100-mile trail. He and his wife Denise are avid sports fans who raised their two kids in an active outdoor environment. What follows is his profile and a discussion between two old friends trying to keep on keeping on and enjoying life while doing it. By the way, his favorite color is periwinkle.

PROFILE OF RUNNER:

A.    Name, age, city and state, how long lived there?

Chris Fall

49

Tucson, AZ

23 years

B.    Place of birth, where did you grow up, high school, college, military, other?

Anchorage AK

Same

Spent first 25 yrs there.

Robert Service High School,

Electrical Engineering degree from Univ. of AZ,

C.    Other than running – hobbies, interests, pets, kids, current employment?

Traveling but usually to races

2 new kittens

Grant 21 year old

Ashley 18 year old

Engineer at Raytheon

D.   Favorite distance to run or race on trail and on the road?

Have done more 50-milers then anything, but nothing beats finishing a 100.

I love every distance on the roads but I guess the marathon is my favorite. 

E.   Favorite race course or event?
       Mount Marathon in Seward, AK… Great memories  and great mountain race. Wasatch too.

F.     Favorite Tucson area trail to train, run, hike?

Any Lemmon ascent, I love leaving the desert and running to the pines.

G.    Favorite vacation destination?

Probably Alaska

H.    Favorite post-race/run food, drink and activity, ie. hot tub, ice cold river soak, etc?

Any race where I can have a beer and watch others finish their event.  I like chips after I finish, if my stomach can handle it.

I.     Pet Peeves?

DNF’s

Going out to fast

A**hole sports fans

J.  Current book you are reading or favorite author?

     Speaker for the Dead, by Orson Scott Card.. Currently reading the Ender Series

     Loved The Hobbit so Tolkien is my favorite.

K.  Favorite quote or saying to live by?

      Ski to Die, Run to Live

L.  Person you look up to, emulate, hero?

       Steve Prefontaine;  run fast, play hard.

  

M.  What has been your worst running injury?

       Plantar Fasciitis; a mild case. 

       A bout of runners knee as well.  I have been very lucky

N.  If you could no longer run or lost the use of your legs what sport or activity would you pursue?

     I’d bike or swim if I could

     If not, wheelchair events

TA:  Thanks for having me over to talk about your most recent 100-mile finish at Pine to Palm.

Chris:  Well, I’m pretty happy with the outcome. I finally got it right.

TA:  How was your race experience? Give me some details.

Chris:  Great race. It was the best 100-miler I’ve ever had…